Pampered by the Toughest Man After Divorce
Chapter 1145 - 1147: Xiao’ai, Dabao, Xiaobei

Chapter 1145: Chapter 1147: Xiao’ai, Dabao, Xiaobei

Xia Dabao insisted on giving him the sweet potatoes and eggs, "I’m not just giving these to you for nothing. I give you eggs and sweet potatoes, and you lend me that book to read. I’ll return it to you after I’m done reading, I promise not to get it dirty or damaged, okay?"

She was finding a way for Tian Xiaobei to step down gracefully. Treating the food as rental payment for the book allowed the prideful Tian Xiaobei to accept without refusal.

Tian Xiaobei licked his somewhat dry lips before nodding slightly, "Okay, do you want to come and get the book, or should I bring it to you?"

"You bring it to me. I’ll be at home tonight," Xia Dabao said, while also handing over the sweet potatoes and eggs to Tian Xiaobei. Tian Xiaobei took them, then turned around and began to eat them in big bites, with his back to Xia Dabao.

Xia Dabao pretended not to notice. She just picked up the bamboo basket and went aside to cut grass. Later, Lanlan and other villagers, including Zhang San, also arrived. Xia Dabao chatted with them while cutting grass, and after Tian Xiaobei finished eating, he continued cutting grass.

When the sun was about to set, Lanlan and Zhang San, along with others, prepared to leave with their bamboo baskets. Since Lanlan was the daughter of Zhao Ershen, she called out to Tian Xiaobei on her way out, "Cousin, shall we go back now?"

Tian Xiaobei looked at the fish grass in the basket and shook his head.

It was still not full.

After Lanlan and the others left, Xia Dabao carried her bamboo basket over to Tian Xiaobei.

Aside from the sound of the wind and the flowing river, there was silence. Xia Dabao looked at Tian Xiaobei. "I’ve finished cutting mine, do you want me to cut some for you?"

Tian Xiaobei shook his head, unwilling to accept the help.

Xia Dabao felt somewhat helpless, "You, you don’t even explain the situation to Zhao Dashen when Zhao Datu steals your fish grass, and now you won’t accept help when you’ve been wronged. Why are you so stubborn? Why insist on staying with Zhao Ershen’s family? You could try finding some short-term jobs in the city, right? With your determination, you wouldn’t starve no matter where you go, would you?"

Tian Xiaobei’s sickle paused for a moment before he responded faintly, "My parents told me to stay here, saying they would come for me one day."

Xia Dabao hadn’t expected Tian Xiaobei to respond to her. His answer took her by surprise.

She looked at Tian Xiaobei again, "But you can’t keep letting Zhao Datu bully you. I’m telling you, Zhao Datu is a coward who only picks on the weak. If you get tough and beat him once or twice, he definitely won’t dare to bully you again."

Tian Xiaobei glanced at Xia Dabao, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth, "I can still bear it, so let it be."

He could bear that too?

But he was just a teenager, pampered from a young age, and he seemed to have a slim build. He probably wasn’t strong enough to fight against Zhao Datu.

However, people with strong self-esteem all have their limits. Perhaps Zhao Datu had not yet reached Tian Xiaobei’s limit, which was why Tian Xiaobei had been tolerating everything.

...

When Xia Dabao got home that day, she immediately told Nan Feng about how Tian Xiaobei was bullied. Nan Feng was picking vegetables to prepare for dinner when she heard it and touched Xia Dabao’s head, "I understand. Our Dabao’s true intention isn’t just to borrow a book. You’re worried that the kid might not have anything to eat for dinner, right?"

Xia Dabao then asked Nan Feng, "What does Mom think?"

Nan Feng turned around and took some more greens out of the vegetable basket, then called for Dabao, "Go inside the house and bring out a smoked fish. Mom will cook more food tonight. We’ll have him over for dinner at our place tonight."